More social networks without parental consent: Parliament adopted on Thursday the obligation for platforms like TikTok, Snapchat or Instagram to verify the age of their users and parental consent when they are under 15.
The text should apply as soon as possible
After the final green light from the National Assembly the day before, the bill obtained Thursday that of the Senate, also unanimous. It is worth definitive adoption of the text carried by Laurent Marcangeli, boss of the deputies Horizons (presidential camp), examined in a consensual climate in the two rooms.
Its date of entry into force will be set by decree, following an opinion to be issued by the European Commission on its compliance with EU law. Social networks will then have one year to comply with their obligations for new registrations.
“Rest assured that we will ensure that this text can be applied as soon as possible”, promised Jean-Noël Barrot, the Minister in charge of the Digital Transition, welcoming a measure “which will mark a milestone”. From pornography to cyberbullying, via unattainable standards of beauty or addictive processes to capture attention: the parliamentarians listed the risks against which the youngest had to be protected.
The numerical majority at 15 years old to which the bill refers was introduced in France in 2018 pursuant to European legislation, which left the possibility of fixing it between 13 and 16 years old. But this threshold concerns more broadly the age under which parental consent is required for the personal data of a minor to be processed. Above all, it is not really applied and has had no impact on children’s access to social networks.
Penalties provided
In theory, social networks are not open to children under 13. But the first registration would occur there on average around eight and a half years, and more than half of 10-14 year olds are present there, according to data from the National Commission for Computing and Freedoms (CNIL).
Faced with this situation, the adopted text establishes an obligation for social networks to verify the age of users and to obtain “the authorization of one of the holders of parental authority” for those under 15 years old. They will have to use “technical solutions in accordance with a reference system” drawn up by the Regulatory Authority for Audiovisual and Digital Communication (Arcom).
The absence to date of a unanimous mechanism was repeatedly underlined during the debates, but the parliamentarians judged that this should not prevent them from sending a strong signal. Parental consent must also be obtained for accounts already held by children under 15, an obligation which will come into force two years after that of the law. In the event of a breach, social networks will be subject to a sanction, with a fine of up to 1% of the company’s global turnover.